Hemant Mehta's Blog, page 1959

The (Animated) Rap Guide to Religion

Baba Brinkman is the brilliant songwriter behind the “Rap Guide to Evolution” and this song about Darwin Day.

His latest project is called “The Rap Guide to Religion,” an animated guide to the evolutionary origins of faith:

Theologians and philosophers have sought the meaning and purpose of life for thousands of years, often finding it in religion. Then Darwin’s theory of evolution turned the world upside down. The supernatural was discarded as the source of answers to the natural world and replaced by the blind force of evolution. And now, with decades of scientific research on hand, we can finally make sense of religion using the tools of evolutionary thinking.

You can hear a sample of the music on his Kickstarter page. Looks like a great cause from a very talented artist!

If You Want to Learn About Atheists, Don’t Watch the Movie God’s Not Dead

Neil Carter, who’s blogging at Patheos now, offers a helpful (and highly snarky) list of the take-away messages he got from God’s Not Dead, the awful movie about a Christian student and his atheist professor:

8. Atheists are angry at God. You can just hear it in all of their voices. They’re all so constantly angry (unless they’ve got an alcoholic beverage in their hands). They only say they disbelieve but what do they know? Poor deluded empty soulless people! They only think they don’t believe but in reality they’re just angry at a God they really know exists. Never mind if they say they don’t believe. You know better than they do. Bless their cold, empty deluded hearts.

The biggest failure of the film, Carter says, is that it does a complete disservice to the idea that Christians love everyone:

But it’s not loving people well to misrepresent them this badly. This movie caricatures, dehumanizes, and depersonalizes people like me, portraying us in the worst possible light. How could I not find this movie disgustingly offensive? Every single atheist in this film is a spineless, uncaring jerk. This is how you love someone like me? You made atheists the bad guys! And not even complex bad guys. You made us two-dimensional cartoon villains who rub our hands together menacingly, tweaking our pencil-thin moustaches above our sinister grins.

By the way, it’s not just atheists who have a problem with this movie. Creation Ministries (not Ken Ham‘s group) published a review earlier this year that slammed the movie for the way it treated atheists:

There are countless sub-plots, and each takes every available chance to unfortunately stereotype, almost to the point of offensiveness, every people group represented.

First: the atheists are portrayed as being one-dimensional and evil. The journalist character is career-driven and rude; ambushing her Christian interview subjects (Duck Dynasty’s Willie Robertson and his wife Korie in one encounter, and the band Newsboys, in another) to ask them offensive questions. For example, she asks, “Why aren’t you barefoot and pregnant?” in the first interview.

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These character portrayals of atheists and other religions will generally be found to be unbelievable by viewers, whether Christian or not. And worse still, for a professing Christian movie to portray them so unreasonably is very uncharitable. Weaker brethren may even find these portrayals believable and if so, it will do nothing to engender Christian love to those who are outside of Christ. We (Christians) do not like to be caricatured in this way, and certainly believers should apply the admonition to “do unto others”.

Remember: Given this movie’s success, it may end up being the first in a series of films. Because all bad Christian movies deserve a sequel.

God is an Abusive Boyfriend (and You Should Break Up): The Book

I’ve written a few books in my time. One was with a “real” publisher, one was done more independently with the help of an editor, and one was a compilation of older blog posts. It’s time to try something different.

My latest project, launching today on Kickstarter, is a book all about how religious people ought to reconsider their “relationship” with a Supreme Being. It’s called God is an Abusive Boyfriend (and you should break up) and it’s based off this Atheist Voice video.

It may look like a children’s book, but the content is more complex than that:

Each two-page spread features Tracey Moody‘s artwork (which you’ve seen here) along with a reason God’s not the right partner for you. Here’s just a sample of what we mean:

Because it’s Kickstarter, we have a lot of rewards available to anyone willing to support this project, and if we’re able to hit our fundraising goal, we also have a lot of stretch goals (like more pages and high-quality printing) that we’d love to include!

Please consider donating to the project and spreading the word. Let’s initiate some breakups!

Publicly-Funded Charter School That Had Clergy Member Deliver Graduation Sermon Promises It Won’t Happen Again

Back in June, I posted about Hope Academy, a publicly-funded charter school in California, because their graduation ceremony featured a pastor who delivered a sermon:

In addition to that constitutional violation, the pastor appeared to have plagiarized the speech from two generic sermon websites.

Yesterday, the American Humanist Association’s Appignani Humanist Legal Center announced that school officials assured them the religious practices would come to a full stop:

We will be removing the spiritual thought from our future graduation and also focus on not having anything that may be a “grey” area in terms of spiritual or religious implications at all future events. Please take this as assurance it will change as of this school year. Thank you.

Monica Miller, an attorney with the AHLC, added:

“We are pleased that the public school has agreed to remove religious elements from its graduation ceremonies in accordance with the state and federal constitutions,” said Monica Miller, an attorney with the Appignani Humanist Legal Center. “By ensuring that its graduations are secular, the school will respect the rights of all students, especially those of minority faiths or no faith at all.”

It shouldn’t have happened in the first place. Thanks to the AHA, at least it won’t happen again.

Charter School Run by Arizona House Republican Eddie Farnsworth Accused of Christian Bias in English Class

According to the syllabus for a seventh-grade English teacher at Benjamin Franklin Charter School in Arizona, students will soon be reading selections from the Old Testament… a book that was apparently written 6000 years ago.

(Why on earth would seventh graders at a public school be reading Genesis and Exodus, anyway?)

The syllabus also includes selections from the New Testament, Pilgrim’s Progress (a Christian allegory), and a C.S. Lewis book.

You could make an argument that teaching selections from the Bible makes perfect sense in an English class, given that there are biblical references in so much of American literature. But even then, a teacher should tread lightly.

Here, Christianity permeates the curriculum every quarter. Add to that the fact that the teacher, Mrs. Kasten, attended Hope International University, a private Christian school with a mission to “empower students through Christian higher education to serve the Church and impact the world for Christ.”

Now it seems pretty obvious what’s going on.

The American Humanist Association’s Appignani Humanist Legal Center sent a letter to the school’s director yesterday addressing these concerns:

The pervasiveness of religiosity in this public school setting is of great concern to those parents and children who would prefer that their schools reflect religious neutrality, as required by law. For this reason, we highly recommend that this curriculum be revised and that serious consideration be given to whether an effort is being made here, consciously or not, to promote a Christian agenda. Perhaps Mrs. Kasten, having been educated at a fundamentalist Christian college, gives undue weight to the need to include theological material in her class, and if so the administration must step in to ensure that the curriculum is academically sound and not religiously biased.

David Niose, the AHLC’s legal director, added:

“Teaching that promotes Christianity and presents a biblical literalist perspective of the Old Testament is a violation of the Establishment Clause of the U.S. Constitution… Students deserve a sound education based on fact, not religious belief.”

In case you’re wondering how a teacher could even get away with this, it’s worth noting that the charter school in question is run by Eddie Farnsworth, who moonlights as a Republican state representative in the Arizona House.

The school can avoid a lawsuit by just modifying the syllabus and monitoring Kasten’s class to make sure she’s teaching religion objectively, if at all.

***Update*** (12:50p) : Farnsworth now says the curriculum isn’t changing at all:

However, Eddie Farnsworth, executive director of Benjamin Franklin Charter Schools, said he believes the syllabus is within legal guidelines and that the texts are included in the curriculum to teach the history of Western literature, not indoctrinate students.

“To jump to the conclusion that somehow this has to be religious teaching because we’re using books they disapprove of, again, is irresponsible,” Farnsworth said.

…

“This is an organization that is kind of grasping at straws, in my opinion, to try to make an organization like ours that has always been in good standing look like it’s doing something inappropriate,” [Farnsworth] said.

“They’ve never sat in a classroom, they’ve never discussed it with us,” he added. “They simply sent out a threatening letter, and I find that to be irresponsible.”

Farnsworth said Kasten would have had input in the syllabus but did not develop it and that the readings and course requirements are standardized and approved by the school principal.

Brian Dunning, Host of Skeptoid Podcast, Sentenced to 15 Months in Prison for Scamming eBay

Brian Dunning (below), the host of the popular Skeptoid podcast with approximately 179,000 weekly listeners, was sentenced this week to 15 months in prison for wire fraud.

His crime involved taking advantage of eBay’s affiliate program.

Here’s how that program is supposed to work: If you own a website like this one, you can provide a link to eBay somewhere in a blog post. If a reader clicks on that link and buys something (anything!) on eBay, you receive a small commission in the process. For most people, that amounts to beer money. A few people are fortunate enough to make a pretty decent amount per month — maybe several hundred dollars.

Brian Dunning, in a 13-month span between 2006 and 2007, made $5,200,000.

How the hell did he do that?

Dunning admitted that he carried out his scheme by providing free applications at two of his websites that users could download and use on their own websites: ProfileMaps.info, which showed the physical location of visitors to a MySpace profile, and WhoLinked.com, which showed who was linking to the user’s website or blog. Both applications contained code Dunning had written that operated so that, when a user visited a website that had installed the application, the code would cause the user’s browser to receive a cookie with KFC’s ID number, even though the user did not click on an eBay ad or link, did not see any content from eBay’s website, and did not realize that his or her browser had been re-directed to eBay’s tracking server. As a result, KFC would be paid if that user subsequently conducted an eBay revenue action within a certain period of time.

In short, he wrote computer code that allowed him to receive a commission from eBay on purchases that had nothing to do with links that he provided on his site. He took advantage of the program, turning his company into the second largest eBay affiliate in the world, and his greed raised enough red flags that the feds eventually caught him.

Earlier this year, Nate Anderson at Ars Technica wrote about Dunning’s scam and how elaborate it became:

Dunning took steps to make this activity harder to detect. According to the government, his programs would not stuff cookies on any computers that appeared to be located in San Jose or Santa Barbara, California (the respective headquarters of eBay and of the outside company eBay used to manage the affiliate program). eBay further alleged that Dunning had programmed his tools not to double stuff machines that had been targeted before. After all, the presence of two eBay cookies bearing the same affiliate ID numbers might have raised a flag in eBay’s anti-fraud systems.

All this from a guy who didn’t even need the money.

The federal attorneys even made Dunning’s greed a focal point in their argument for a tough sentence:

Mr. Dunning did quite well. As the PSR notes… he was able to pay off his mortgage in 2007 using the proceeds of commissions paid to him by eBay. It is therefore ironic that one of the arguments Mr. Dunning may be expected to make in an effort to avoid prison is that, if he is sent to prison, he and his family might be forced to sell the house… — although, since there are no bank liens, it is unclear exactly who the Dunnings are expecting to force a sale: Mr. Dunning’s attorneys? His step-father? Regardless, like the “trauma” theme discussed earlier, the government would submit that any risk that Mr. Dunning might have to sell or refinance his home to pay legal fees falls into the category of a self-inflicted wound.

They asked for a 27-month prison sentence. They got 15. Even if that’s a relatively light sentence, it’s good to see a white-collar criminal get punished for once.

There’s also no shortage of irony in seeing a notable skeptic get taken down by even better skeptics who saw through his deceptions.

***Update*** (7:53p CT) : Dunning has issued a personal statement.

(via Skepchick)

After Several Local Shootings, Pastors Want to Visit Florida Public Schools to “Help” Kids… and Spread the Faith

Times have been rough in Panama City, Florida lately. A series of shootings have put residents on alert, including students who will soon be heading back to school.

But when they arrive on campus, more than 30 Christian pastors will be waiting for them, validating that old political canard about never letting a serious crisis go to waste.

More than 30 local pastors are taking the fight to the classrooms, working with Bay District School Faculty, to help students who have experienced trauma over the summer. “The churches want to do this and the churches want to get involved. They want to be there the first day of school. They want to be there and be available for the students to talk with if they want to. Just as a recognition of support,” Bay County Schools Superintendent Bill Husfelt said.

During the first few weeks of school, pastors will be on campus, offering support to those who are related to the suspects or the victims in the latest gun violence. “We are going to walk them though this difficult valley with a good solid word, faith and encouragement. A positive voice versus all the negative voices,” Family of God Baptist Church Pastor Kenric Conway said.

If anyone sincerely believes these pastors want access to children out of the goodness of their hearts — and not because at least some part of them wants to sell these kids on the idea of Jesus — then I have a perpetual motion machine I’d like to sell you. It’s irrelevant that the program is voluntary for students; it’s an obvious endorsement of Christianity by the district. (Will they allow atheists and Muslims and Wiccans access to these kids, too, even if they’re not trained as grief counselors? I’m sure many would volunteer.)

The Freedom From Religion Foundation is already working to put a stop to this, sending a letter to Superintendent Bill Husfelt yesterday:

… It is inappropriate for a public school and its employees to give religious organizations, preachers, pastors, and the like access to public school students. Granting Christians this access to students during the school day suggests that Bay District Schools unlawfully prefers not only for religion over non-religion, but Christianity over other faiths.

…

Violating the Constitution with this program is not a way to “make the kids feel comfortable coming back to school and let them know the community loves them and cares about them.” If that is your goal, seek out child psychologists or grief counselors trained to handle the needs of children, not trained to proselytize for their religion.

Who needs child psychologists when you have Jesus to stop the bullets, right?

(Thanks to Dennis for the link!)

Secular Invocation Referencing Harry Potter Delivered in Sioux Falls, South Dakota

Amanda Novotny, President of the Siouxland Freethinkers, delivered an invocation at last night’s meeting of the Sioux Falls City Council:

This has been in the works for quite some time and Novotny did a wonderful job. (You can watch the video here.)

Thank you Mr. Mayor, Council members, citizens of Sioux Falls, and all those present for this opportunity to provide an inspirational opening to your meeting.

Often at this time, you are asked to bow your heads. Instead, I ask you to lift your head up and look around. Turn your attention to this room — a room that has heard countless discussions, frustrations, and successes; a room where important decisions regarding your city are routinely made.

Now take a moment to soak in the presence of the men and women in this room, gathered here at this time and place to engage in their civic duty, to contribute and work towards creating a better community. Think of the hundreds and thousands of others who are also affected by the ideas shared here. Let all voices be heard and understood equally.

It is also often customary to read from a book during an invocation, and tonight will be no different — I’ll be sharing a quote from J.K. Rowling’s “Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire” in which Professor Albus Dumbledore said:

“Differences of habit and language are nothing at all if our aims are identical and our hearts are open.”

Although our differences may be many, we are bound together in similarity as members of the human species. As humans, we have the capacity to appreciate and thank each other; to utilize compassion and reason in our decision making. I ask those present to join me in showing gratitude to the men and women that serve the great city of Sioux Falls. We need only look to each other for guidance, and work together to overcome any challenges we may face.

Let’s see a Christian quote that holy book

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The Central Florida Freethought Community keeps a running list of transcripts of secular invocations around the country and you can see their compilation right here.

You Think God is Omnipotent? More Like…

That sounds much more accurate.

You can find this image and many others like it on the Friendly Atheist Facebook page!

It’s Not Too Late to Sign Up for the Colorado Secular Conference

The Colorado Secular Conference is taking place in less than two weeks and it’s not too late to get tickets:

There are tons of great speakers there — including several that I’ve never seen before, which is fantastic. (I’ll be there, too.) There’s also a separate space for children, handled by Camp Quest, and for teenagers who are there only because their parents wanted to attend

On a side note, organizers tell me there’s been no negative reaction to their billboard yet, even with “god” written in all lower case letters.